Recipe of the month: Aidan’s Kitchen

March 5, 2019

Aidan Jackson opened Aidan’s Kitchen in summer 2018 and it has quickly become the best chill-out spot in Sandyford, Newcastle, serving breakfast, lunch and coffee. Here, Aidan shares his Shakshuka recipe – with a few optional extras to make this Tunisian dish extra special

• In a metal-handled frying pan, sweat the onions in oil for around five minutes until they become translucent
• Add the Harissa paste and continue cooking until all the moisture in the pan has evaporated.
• Deglaze the pan with the chopped tomatoes and cook out until the sauce has reduced and the ‘wateriness’ has disappeared.
• Roast and skim the rosario peppers, remove the seeds and chop the flesh. Add them to the pan.
• Season with salt and pepper and a pinch of sugar.
• Once the stew is lightly simmering, crack your eggs into themix. Either finish cooking the eggs on the hob or in the oven.
• Once the eggs are cooked to your liking, remove the pan from the heat, spoon over the Greek yoghurt, crumble the feta cheese and sprinkle with chopped coriander.
• Shakshuka is a dish that allows you to use your flare. At Aidan’s Kitchen, we use merguez sausage to garnish, which massively enhances that spiced flavour. Chorizo is a similar, cheaper option. Alternatively you can add chickpeas and sprinkle sumac on to give that extra citrus note.
• Serve with slabs of toasted sourdough.